Grand Valley State moves on to fifth consecutive semifinal with 2-1 win

DULUTH, Minn. -- Nothing could prevent Grand Valley State from making its fifth consecutive NCAA championship semifinals appearance. One of the nation's most prolific scorers was held in check and the Lakers dealt Minnesota-Duluth its first home loss of the season in a 2-1 victory in Sunday's quarterfinal match.

Freshman midfielder Marti Corby's goal in the fourth minute of the first half gave GVSU an early advantage.

Corby nailed a free kick from roughly 20 yards into the bottom-left corner of the goal to put the Lakers out in front. She has scored in all three of GVSU's NCAA tournament matches and notched five goals during the past five contests.

In the 72nd minute, junior midfielder Charlie Socia added what wound up being the game-winning goal with some nifty footwork in the box. Socia beat a defender one-on-one by turning to her right, keeping the ball on her foot and chipping it over keeper Marissa Rosa.

Minnesota Duluth added some drama late in the match thanks to Jennifer Smith's goal in the 82nd minute. It was just the third goal GVSU has given up all season long.

After a couple of close calls early on, including a timely blocked shot right in front of the goal by senior defender Kayla Kimble, GVSU kept the Bulldogs at bay. Minnesota-Duluth managed to get off five shots in the first 18:30 of regulation, but only tallied seven shots the rest of the afternoon.

The top-seeded Lakers, who improved to 22-0-1 on the year, will face American International in the semis, which will be played on Dec. 5 in Evans, Ga.